You’ve asked to be kept up to date on Treaty issues. The knowledge will never be more important than now. On Saturday you decide who’ll be in charge of treaty issues for the next three years.

So here is some inside info. You won’t get this comparison of policy promises anywhere else. TV and the newpapers rarely dig below the surface. For me as a lawyer, the fine print is where I look first because the sound bites are reported, and cunning politicians calculate that they are all that will be reported.

So I’ve done some homework. Set out below is a comparison of ACT Party promises with the others.

Judge for yourself whether National will be able to implement its Treaty policy without ACT support.

Conclusion

For a classic example of slipperiness follow Peters’ trail on the Maori seats. Originally he was going to abolish them. Then it became “when the people agree”. Next, NZ First candidates started mumbling agreement to the Labour line “when Maori agree”. Now Dail Jones has confirmed that NZ First policy is to “discuss with Maori the ending of Maori seats”.

If National have to rely on NZ First or United Future to govern, National is unlikely to be able to fulfil its Treaty promises, assuming National and NZ First deign to throw their support behind National instead of Labour.

ACT can ensure they deliver. In fact we will press National to include the additional elements from our policy.